I have a 2003 Passat and it won't start at random times. The battery would loose all it's charge but has the battery tested and it was fine. Hooked a voltmeter to the battery and with engine off got 12.4v. Right when I start it it would drop to about 10.6-11.1v. While running it would show 14.1v and with all accessories on and running at about 2000rpm it would read 13.6v.
View 10 RepliesBought a Passat 2.0 Komfort and we're on its' first road trip. Between 65 - 80 mph a chime goes off three times at seemingly random intervals whether I'm accelerating or decelerating in that zone. The speed warning is turned off and the winter tire function is off. There are no warning lights or messages. It's got my salesperson and a VW service dept baffled.
View 18 RepliesThere wasn't even a crank. Held the ignition for a couple of seconds and it starts. The next day I had the battery and the alternator checked, they were both good. Another couple days passed and it did not want to start again. Got it scanned no codes come up. I changed the ignition switch and still I have the same problem with no crank.
View 8 RepliesI have a 1990 honda civic dx. with only 115,000 miles. For the most part it runs great, but for the past year it has given me problems when I try to start it. What happens is that at random times, it just cranks, but it doesn't start. Sometimes, if I try it several times (as much as 20 attempts) it will eventually start. Sometimes I have to leave the car for some time (10 minutes up to a few hours) and then it will start. I checked the spark, when it doesn't start, and it has a good spark. This seems to happen mostly when it is hot, never at night. My mechanic changed the distributor and that did not solve the problem. The ECM gave 16 flashes. My mechanic is frustrated in dealing with this because often it starts right up.
View 6 RepliesMy son drives a 2003 Ford Focus with 183,000 miles on it. At random times when he starts the car, the engine runs very rough at idle speed but when he drives away, it runs fine until he slows for a stop sign/turn, etc. and the engine is at idle speed again. When this happens, the engine runs so roughly, that he loses vacuum to the brakes and his brakes stiffen dangerously. The car may not do this at all for a couple of weeks of driving, and when it doesn't do it, it runs beautifully.
Also, it only runs like this if it does it from start-up; it never idles roughly in the middle of a drive in which the car started normally. I have changed the spark plugs and wires, PCV valve, fuel filter, and air filter, but it still goes through this about once a week. I bought the car used just a few months ago and it had just had the valve cover gasket changed because the valve cover was leaking.
It started sputtering at random times a few days ago and the check engine light came on. The two codes are p0401 (blocked egr system) and p0402 (egr valve stuck open). It seems to do it most when it's cold but some days it'll do it non stop.
View 1 RepliesI have a 2001 F350 7.3 the truck will at random times loose power and almost shut down. A while back I had an issue with the uvch plugs and changed that out. Truck ran fine till I got some dirty fuel from a diesel tank at my friends farm. I did the hutch mod cleaned the tank and now have a frame mounted screw on filter before the pump. I cleaned the fuel bowl and changed the filter. Fuel pressure stays at 59psi and drops to 56psi wot. The truck is tuned with an edge programmer. After these mods the truck ran awesome for over 2000 miles. Now it has the above stated problem. I have fuel and hpop guages along with egt and boost. During the problem egts will increase rapidly and it seems like it is starving for fuel.
Hpop gauge reads 3300psi or above during wot and shows good pressure during these mishaps. I have auto Enginuity and I get a different reading at wot of only 2600 psi. The hpop gauge is tapped into the icp sensor per instructions and has been installed this way for a while with no issues. The tune has been on the truck for over 40000 miles. The only thing that I can come up with is it will occasionally throw a p1211 under wot or pulling my Gooseneck Dump Trailer when loaded. However it acts up sometimes and doesn't throw the code. Sometimes you can shut it off and start it back up and it's fine other times it will last for the whole day. My only guess is low pressure from the hpop but I don't reflect this from my gauge only on AE at wot. Wouldn't a bad pump act up all the time? Am I correct to think it is just the ipr?
I have a audi a4 1.8t engine code atw and for awhile i would have random no starts then about two weeks ago it shut off while i was driving home from school and hasn't started since. it turns over fine but i am getting no spark and im getting the error codes p1517, p1433, and p0321 so far i have changed the crank position sensor, the cam position sensor, and the ecm main power supply relay. Still I am getting no start i cant figure this out...
View 7 RepliesI have a problem with my wife's 2010 Corolla where the AC only comes on at random times. The blower blows constantly, but only blows cold air every once in awhile. When it blows the cold air, it feels perfect. We had it checked at three different places and they still haven't found out what's wrong.
The first place refilled the coolant and got it working, but it only lasted a day. When we took it back they said it worked fine for them, but took it home and again it crapped out the next day. Took it back to them and they couldn't figure it out.
Second place said it needed a new or refurbished compressor, but that didn't make sense to me since when it's working, it works great. Also pressure was normal on hi and lo.
Third place took a look at it today and said they got it to work briefly by turning on the heat??? Doesn't make sense. They're closed on weekends so we'll take it back to them on Monday and they'll continue to troubleshoot.
I have a 1999 Buick Regal GS with a supercharged 3.8 liter engine and 161,000 miles. I bought the car off of my uncle and he said he would have to change plug wires every month to month and a half because it would start missing so bad. When I first drove the car it would quit on me at red lights and in parking lots, it only seemed to do it at low idle speeds. I live on a hill with a blacktop road and I had to give it a lot of gas just to pull the hill it was missing so bad. The plug wire had a lifetime warranty on them so I replaced them and it stopped quitting on me but I still had a bad miss at random but not as bad it would just be like hard jerks. I added sea foam fuel injection cleaner and had the fuel filter replaced. The mechanic checked the spark plugs and he said they were like new AC Delco. I also cleaned the MAF Sensor (the mechanic told me to and how) because the engine did not run steady at idle and it seemed to work that, but not the miss. Could my problem be the plug wires? They are carquest brand 7mm wires.
View 6 RepliesI have a 01 wolfsburg jetta with aw engine code .. I have replaced and gaped spark plugs all 4 coils , DV. As well as fuel filter . Sometimes it runs fine . It misfire at random times most often at WOT. ..and I've noticed almost always when fuel level is low.. installed a boost gauge .. after disconnecting battery to reset ecu it boosts 10psi and runs strong .. however 1 or 2 WOT and it will misfire and then I won't boost over 4-5 PSI .. worst of all I get no CEL not even blinking .. I have also located a leak in the brake booster line . Does this affect it at all? ..
View 2 RepliesI have read all the answers about the alarm going off at random times, mine just started tonight and dealership is closed. Is there anything that I can do to keep it from going off and waking the neighborhood?
View 2 RepliesI recently brought my 2000 chrysler sebring in because the alarm was going off at random times (3:00am). Also when I was driving the interior lights would turn on and off and the dash readout would say "DOOR" as if I had opened the door, there was a relay clicking sound under the dash and the car would also try to relock the doors. This was an intermittent problem, occasionally the car would be fine for a while then the show would begin. I took it to a local Chrysler dealer and they diagnosed the problem to be the BCM or Body Control Module.
My conclusion is that this whole problem was caused by a shorting door switch and that either they misdiagnosed the problem and when the new BCM did not fix the problem they found the real problem in the door switch or they just scammed me from the start. I think the "part exchange program" is a scam. Why don't I get the part back or why don't I get two prices, one if I exchange the part and one if I don't.
Could a faulty driver door switch damage a BCM? (I never heard of this before. In fact another dealer told me all he needed was the VIN to see if the part was in stock).
My wife was driving our 2012 Prius C that we bought new three months ago and as we were backing out of a parking space the horn sounded in a stuttering pattern. She stopped and the horn did too. As she continued to back up the horn stuttered again, this time I was watching her hands and the steering wheel. She was not touching it except in a normal driving manner. Nothing touching the center of the steering wheel. Looking over the dashboard displays we saw nothing abnormal.
As we drove out of the parking lot the horn fully sounded for a split second then stopped. We turned left onto the street and as she straightened the wheel the horn started blowing like it was in alarm mode; on-off-on-off. We pulled into a parking lot, shut off the car and the horn stopped. Drove 12 miles home with no further problem.
At random times already happened twice, when i try to close my sunroof it doesn't close all the way. Right when its about to close it just opens back up. Obviously when i try to take it to the dealer it works fine. I was able to capture a video on my phone explaining and showing whats happening...
View 14 RepliesOver the past 3 years or so, my 1993 Honda Civic began not starting at very random times. Everything would appear to be working but the engine wouldn't fire up, until after a few tries or minutes. I got the fuel pump relay replaced last March and that worked for a bit but then my car acted up again in June and an electrical connector to the fuel pump was replaced. My car had been starting every time since, until last week. This is the worst it has ever been; my engine took about 3 hours (re-trying it here and there) to decide to turn over and start on its own, worked great for 3 days and then again just would not start. On a whim, I jumped it that time and it worked. This seems strange to me because all the electricity in the car was working when it wouldn't start, and my battery checked out fine when it was tested recently.
View 5 RepliesThe factory 'Security System' aka alarm, in my 2000 Honda Accord EX goes off randomly. When this happens the horn sounds and lights flash for several minutes at a time. This can happen several times in one day and then not happen again for days or weeks. The owner's manual says that the security system is activated when the doors are locked and will sound an alarm if a passenger door, trunk lid or hood are opened while the system is activated. The system is deactivated by using either a key or the remote transmitter to unlock the doors. My mechanic tried to disable the hood latch switch, but this caused the alarm to sound continuously. How to fix the problem or disable the security system?
View 4 RepliesI own an 87 Buick Lesabre Limited Coupe [URL] ..... I have driven it for the past 6 years with no major problems, but just now it has begun to have a stalling problem. The engine just shuts off at random times. Doesn't matter if you're at a red light or driving in traffic. She will stall, then after 5 minutes will start up again, and stall again. So, I took to it to my mechanic & he changed the ignition module & mass air sensor. I picked it up, and the 'Service Engine Soon' light went on, and then she stalled a few minutes later.
So, I drove her back to the shop (stalling several times on the way), and my mechanic changed the crank position sensor, and she still died. He read the trouble code 42, so he changed the ignition module again. I picked her up yesterday, and she made it home without stalling, but the 'Service Engine Soon' light still goes on after 5 minutes of idling, which leads me to believe that the problem lies somewhere else. Could it be an electrical problem (wiring, fuses, computer) that is causing the 'service engine soon' light to go on & the car to shut off? What else could it be?
So my car stereo (center console) had been cutting in and out at random times, spoke to a tech from the garage and it seems like a lose connection is really really unlikely, that most likely the stereo is just on its way out.
So left with the option of replacing it. Is this a big task to replace/not worth it and simply go without a stereo?
It's a Nissan Rogue 2010,.
Recently, my Explorer will sound like a cessna first thing in the morning, and then at random times through out the day. Then, the other day, the temp spiked on my wife. She pulled over, and let it sit for a bit, started it back up, and haven't had a problem since with temp. We only hear the sound on acceleration, and I have noticed that my F250 does it sometimes also, but not to the same extent. Is this normal, or a sign that the fan clutch is bad?
View 8 RepliesMy 98' 1.8t AEB was having a bad valve tick so i took the valve cover off and noticed the top camshaft had a lobe eaten away pretty bad and it looks like the bearing next to it was spinning I KNOW that its from a lack of lubrication so that means its my oil pump? there was absolutely no sludge or swarf that i could see.
what made me take the valve cover off was a small oil leak and i thought it was the gasket, but my PCV valve slipped out of its sleeve so thats where the oil came from.
also, every time i started my car the oil would come on right away, beep three times, and blink until i shut the car off.
So, i guess i am wondering, do i have deeper problems here or could i replace the cams, bearings and oil pump?